?? Google’s Monopoly Ruling, Instagram’s Commitment to Views & Meta Advertising Updates

Welcome to Prosek’s Digital Download: where industry-leading insights in financial services and digital marketing collide.

August continues to heat up in the world of digital marketing! The recent Google ruling has sparked industry-wide conversation; if upheld against the company’s appeal, it has the potential to create shifts in digital strategy and search. Meanwhile, with critical updates from Instagram and Meta, considerable changes are underway.

Far from the typical dog days of summer, there is not a slowdown in sight this month. To ensure you stay fully informed and ready to adapt, dive into the latest edition of the Digital Download for all you need to know.

- Sophia Torres

3 Can’t-Miss Digital Updates

Social Media and Advertising

What Could Google Monopoly Ruling Mean For You?

• What's happening: After four years, a US judge has ruled that Google acted illegally to maintain its monopoly in online search and advertising, marking a significant setback for its parent company, Alphabet. The decision accuses Google of using billions of dollars in payments to secure default status as the search engine on various platforms, thereby stifling competition. While the specific penalties are yet to be determined, the government has requested potential "structural relief," which could include breaking up the company. Google plans to appeal the ruling, arguing that their dominance is due to superior service rather than anti-competitive practices.?
• Why it matters: While consequences of the ruling may take years to unfold, this decision reinstates that no big tech company is above the law. The case reflects broader antitrust efforts against major tech companies in the US and follows a series of legal challenges aimed at curbing the power of big tech. That said, the recent US court ruling against Google's monopoly could have several implications for marketers, including increased competition in the search and advertising markets, changes in advertising costs, digital strategy changes, shifts in traffic distribution and long term uncertainty. While immediate impacts may be minimal, this ruling bears monitoring to determine if digital strategies will need to be adjusted in the future.?

Instagram Is Making Views The Primary Metric For Content

• What's happening: Instagram is evolving its insight categories, bringing consistency across all content formats (Photos, Carousels, Stories and Reels) by making Views a primary metric to evaluate performance of posts. Views, along with other metrics like reach and sends per reach, will distinguish the impact of your content given they help provide a more comprehensive measure of overall engagement. Instagram's move is intended to better align with current social media trends and user behaviors, and allows marketers to easily compare the performance of different content styles. This change is expected to roll out in the coming weeks.?
• Why it matters: Instagram is not the first to make this move; Meta made views a focus metric on Threads earlier this year and X has also placed increased priority on view counts. With views becoming a more primary metric, marketers will need to adjust their strategies to focus further on reach and visibility rather than only engagement through likes and comments. This change emphasizes the importance of attention-grabbing content, and a need to refine content that incorporates compelling visuals and messaging to bring value to and resonate with users. Additionally, this shift could influence how campaign success is measured and reported. It will be critical to compare insights and overall performance of posts once this has been implemented to understand how overall engagement is impacted when higher view counts are achieved.

Meta Removes Detailed Targeting Exclusions From Ad Campaigns

• What's happening: Meta has announced that it will remove detailed targeting exclusions from its advertising platform, impacting how advertisers can refine their audience targeting. Specifically, advertisers will no longer be able to exclude distinct demographic, interest, or behavioral categories from their campaigns. This change aims to simplify the ad targeting process and enhance user privacy, addressing concerns about discrimination and the potential misuse of detailed targeting data.?
• Why it matters: Based on these changes, advertisers will need to adjust their strategies to adapt to new limitations while continuing to reach their desired audiences. With the loss of the ability to exclude specific demographic, interest, or behavioral groups, marketers will have to rely more on broad audience targeting and creative approaches to ensure their ads reach the right people. This may require revisiting audience segmentation strategies, focusing on optimizing ad content for broader appeal, and leveraging Meta's remaining targeting options to effectively engage their desired customer base. Additionally, marketers will need to pay closer attention to performance metrics and adjust campaigns based on broader audience interactions and feedback.

Good Reads

• World Federation of Advertisers is Shutting Down Global Alliance for Responsible Media after X Lawsuit
• Publishers are Redoubling their Presence on Reddit as the Platform Rises in Search Visibility
• YouTube Tests Merging Shorts and Long-Form Video into a Single Feed
• Meta Expands Profile Connections for Business Suite
• The Man behind the Last Decade of NBC Olympic Logos

Marketing Inspiration?

Blackstone announced its partnership with one of Japan’s top platforms for online comics, Manga Platform Infocom, with an engaging and creative animated video featuring Stephen A. Schwarzman and Jon Gray in Japanese comic-style.

EY thanked its summer interns in a creative wrap-up post, featuring photos from the program and social copy that showcased the wide reach of talent included in this summer’s intern class.?

The Carlyle Group utilized an aesthetically pleasing quote card from Chief Executive Officer, Harvey Schwartz, to announce Q2 2024 financial results.?